This is about to be the most boring month of my life. Or at least for a couple of weeks. Tomorrow, Tim, Renee and the girls leave for Greece. That is good and bad. Good, because, well hello, my boss is leaving town!! (Just kidding, there, you guys) But I am going to miss the girls, and Renee and I chit chat a lot during the day, so hmm.
Then on Monday, mom and dad are leaving for their trip with my grandparents. Okay, so there go some more of my friends. I hang out with my parents like twice a week usually!!
Then on Tuesday, Stephen is leaving for Charleston and won't be back until the 20th. How BORING and SAD!! I will probably go see him once and be totally lonely the rest of the time.
Not to say that everyone is leaving me. Jenn is still here, and so are mom's parents who I spend tons of time with. So I'll have plenty to do. And Stephen will probably not recognize the house when he gets back because I have some "reorganization" ideas in mind!! I am determined to make our house cute by Thanksgiving because that's the next time we'll have guests.
YAY! (Not about people leaving, about making our house cute.)
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Monday, September 24, 2007
Artsy Fartsy
Jenn and I spent the weekend with Libba in Charlotte. My mind was unbelievably blown away, from the moment I saw Lib's decor to the Art and Chocolate shop to the Art Festival. I cannot imagine people possessing such talent. I still think Lib had to hire someone to decorate her house - no normal person has that kind of vision. Just kidding Lib! I got some ideas from her but I promise they will not look normal in my house.
The food was one of the best parts of the weekend. We ate at Macaroni Grill, Fuddrucker's, and some pancake house which I should remember the name of but I don't. I can't believe how good that food was. Incredible. Also incredible that I judge so much of the weekend based on how good the food was.
It was so much fun to get away for a weekend. I can't wait for Stephen's new job to start in October so that we can do things together on weekends again. Of course, I will obviously want to do trips with just girls too, so I don't overload on testosterone.
This weekend is the first UFC at our house with everyone coming. I can't wait! And these are going to be some great fights, so I'm really excited. Also, I'm excited about the food that will be there.
We are going grocery shopping tonight. We haven't gone for 6 weeks because we're in such a mode of finishing everything before we go spend more money on stuff that will sit around. We have so much food in the freezer and pantry. But I have to admit, we're really starting to stretch it, and we're eating the same things over and over again. So we're breaking down and going tonight, but we won't get much because of Stephen leaving for Charleston soon. We'll go shopping when he's home for good.
This is a pretty boring post and I apologize, I'm really just trying to fill up some time. So I guess I'll go now and do something else.
The food was one of the best parts of the weekend. We ate at Macaroni Grill, Fuddrucker's, and some pancake house which I should remember the name of but I don't. I can't believe how good that food was. Incredible. Also incredible that I judge so much of the weekend based on how good the food was.
It was so much fun to get away for a weekend. I can't wait for Stephen's new job to start in October so that we can do things together on weekends again. Of course, I will obviously want to do trips with just girls too, so I don't overload on testosterone.
This weekend is the first UFC at our house with everyone coming. I can't wait! And these are going to be some great fights, so I'm really excited. Also, I'm excited about the food that will be there.
We are going grocery shopping tonight. We haven't gone for 6 weeks because we're in such a mode of finishing everything before we go spend more money on stuff that will sit around. We have so much food in the freezer and pantry. But I have to admit, we're really starting to stretch it, and we're eating the same things over and over again. So we're breaking down and going tonight, but we won't get much because of Stephen leaving for Charleston soon. We'll go shopping when he's home for good.
This is a pretty boring post and I apologize, I'm really just trying to fill up some time. So I guess I'll go now and do something else.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
100 stream-of-consciousness things about me
1. I am absolutely starving.
2. I have gotten hungrier since Nate got here with the hamburger buns.
3. We can't start the grill until the rest of the people get here over an hour from now.
4. The logical thing to do would be have a snack.
5. I ate more breakfast than usual this morning because of Emma and Jessie being here and I wanted to be a good example for them.
6. They ate until they "couldn't put another bite in their mouth", as Jessie put it.
7. I never realized Stephen's talents will actually come in handy when we have kids, like talking like a pirate, or whistling when he says "S"
8. Although they were pretty impressed with my accent which they call my "Mary Poppins accent"
9. I can't keep my mind off of my stomach growling.
10. Although I can hardly hear it over the guffaws coming from Nate and Stephen as they blow people up in their video game.
11. I really really love this new song by Finger Eleven called "Paralyzed"
12. The version I have is really tenor-y with not enough bass so it's kind of crackly.
13. The newest songs on my Ipod are from one of my youth group members who is trying to turn me on to country.
14. I don't want to hurt his feelings, but it ain't workin'.
15. My favorite country CD is one that is actually labeled as Southern that was mixed by Jenn.
16. Stephen refused to accept that no one up north has sweet tea and without fail, asked everyone if, by chance, they had it.
17. He got a lot of replies like this: "Well, we have artificial sweeteners on the table..."
18. So that's supposed to make up for it??
19. We saw a billboard that proclaimed McDonald's NOW HAS SWEET TEA.
20. We almost ran to the nearest McDonald's but decided against it.
21. I wondered aloud if sweet tea would now overtake the nation.
22. Also, is there anywhere around here that we can get butter pretzels?
23. ALSO, have you tried the new Pringles Stix that are honey wheat??
24. They taste like yeast rolls from Golden Corral. Hubba hubba.
25. Was hubba hubba an extra thought? Nah.
26. I had to play Tooth Fairy last name because Emma lost her molar while she was at our house.
27. I was uber excited, even after I found out she gets $2, that's right, $2!!! for a molar with a "silver star" in it, which means a cavity has been filled.
28. Say what!?!?
29. In my day, you got a quarter, and you were dang lucky to get that quarter.
30. Molar, incisor, last tooth ever lost... quarter.
31. I'm probably going to give my kid a quarter - what they heck are they gonna do with all that money anyway?
32. If they buy something, it's my money that they're buying it with anyway!
33. Also, I almost had to pay her in quarters because I didn't have any cash.
34. I am totally addicted to DDR.
35. In college, Mary and I would put DDR on workout mode, and during breaks we'd drink beer and eat ice cream, in order to balance everything out.
36. And when Keely and I would run, we would finish off our runs with a pint each of Ben and Jerry's.
37. I'm sensing a pattern.
38. Now I just go ahead and eat the ice cream, and knock that whole pesky exercise thing out of the picture.
39. Sometimes I think I'd be happier if I was Garfield.
40. I hope the Fayetteville Observer comes tomorrow with coupons.
41. They're the only newspaper that will deliver out here.
42. But we just got a new Family Dollar built here - woot!
43. Movin' on up... we got a new Mexican place too!
44. Although we only eat out about once a month or less, so a fat lotta good it does us.
45. Britt Nicole is like religious music's Lily Allen.
46. I really miss Charleston for the simple fact that there was someone cool coming for a concert every week.
47. If no one was coming in concert, a hockey game was being played, or a monster truck rally, or SOMETHING.
48. I hate having to drive to Raleigh or Greensboro to hear someone play that I really like.
49. Now that we are heading up the youth group, we really have an excuse to go to more concerts.
50. Our last concert was last April - we took mom and dad for her birthday to see Third Day and David Crowder Band.
51. Mom jumped around more than most kids there!
52. Our next concert is Casting Crowns in November and then David Crowder in November.
53. Not hearing shouting from downstairs makes me worried that Nate and Stephen will interrupt me at any minute and I won't be able to finish this blog.
54. I can't do this at work because my thoughts are all - "AAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!"
55. I found Jennifer C.'s baby shower present today.
56. Her shower was last Sunday.
57. It was in my suitcase.
58. Not unpacked from Pennsylvania.
59. Which we got back from 10 days ago.
60. Luckily I had gotten her other stuff, and mom had showered her (literally) with clothes, so she's not needy or anything.
61. Actually, I'll probably give her the book but keep the clothes.
62. I can't shut my hope chest anymore because of all the baby clothes.
63. If we can't have children, Jenn Kirby's babies will be VERY fashionable.
64. Also they will have lots of books, toys, coloring books, and an artwork holder that says "Dylan" on it.
65. I'm not changing my son's name just to match his used artwork holder.
66. Our doorbell just rang so that means more people are showing up.
67. If I'm really quiet, no one will come looking for me.
68. If it's Aaron, he'll want to play the game with Stephen and Nate anyway, so he won't even think to look for me.
69. If it's Steve, he'll think I want to be included, and he'll come talk to me.
70. Nice gesture, but I think I'll be overloaded with testosterone tonight.
71. I can't wait for the UFC at the end of this month because of all the girls who will be there.
72. Even if they don't like it, they come to be sociable and I'm so happy about that!
73. Plus we always have really good food.
74. I got a free Glamour in the mail today because Jane magazine went out of business.
75. I actually hate Jane magazine and had tried to unsubscribe for 2 years now with no luck.
76. Now I've successfully unsubscribed - great timing.
77. So I've got a free Glamour and a check for a $2 refund.
78. Although $2 would get me a ton of books in the 10 cent section at the Habitat store!
79. But then I'd have a ton of trashy romance novels...
80. And everyone knows I only read the wholesome Christian romance novels.
81. That skirt around several issues, but I love them anyway.
82. One of our kids put a dead cricket on the prayer list last Wednesday night.
83. What do you say to that, exactly?
84. Our other adult, Maria, said, "I think it's a little late for that..."
85. It's interesting to see what things are funny to them and wonder if I would have laughed at that 10 years ago.
86. I don't think so.
87. I'm feeling a lot of pressure now that I'm so close to the end of this.
88. Soon I've got to go face all these guys.
89. Luckily, once the fight is on, no one will pay attention to each other.
90. Does this mean we can start the grill now?
91. I just got word that the grill has been started.
92. I have arm weights up here that I've only used one time.
93. I quit using them because my arms didn't get stronger after one use.
94. Same goes for my Abs of Steel video.
95. We have a "Bat Cave" here that leads to our attic.
96. Very attractive to little kids.
97. I saw a baby bat one time that had flown into a garage by accident.
98. Literally. He was lying there wounded.
99. A nice lady picked him up with a stick and set him on a bush to heal.
100. Uh.. I think that's a good note to end on. It can only go downhill from here on.
2. I have gotten hungrier since Nate got here with the hamburger buns.
3. We can't start the grill until the rest of the people get here over an hour from now.
4. The logical thing to do would be have a snack.
5. I ate more breakfast than usual this morning because of Emma and Jessie being here and I wanted to be a good example for them.
6. They ate until they "couldn't put another bite in their mouth", as Jessie put it.
7. I never realized Stephen's talents will actually come in handy when we have kids, like talking like a pirate, or whistling when he says "S"
8. Although they were pretty impressed with my accent which they call my "Mary Poppins accent"
9. I can't keep my mind off of my stomach growling.
10. Although I can hardly hear it over the guffaws coming from Nate and Stephen as they blow people up in their video game.
11. I really really love this new song by Finger Eleven called "Paralyzed"
12. The version I have is really tenor-y with not enough bass so it's kind of crackly.
13. The newest songs on my Ipod are from one of my youth group members who is trying to turn me on to country.
14. I don't want to hurt his feelings, but it ain't workin'.
15. My favorite country CD is one that is actually labeled as Southern that was mixed by Jenn.
16. Stephen refused to accept that no one up north has sweet tea and without fail, asked everyone if, by chance, they had it.
17. He got a lot of replies like this: "Well, we have artificial sweeteners on the table..."
18. So that's supposed to make up for it??
19. We saw a billboard that proclaimed McDonald's NOW HAS SWEET TEA.
20. We almost ran to the nearest McDonald's but decided against it.
21. I wondered aloud if sweet tea would now overtake the nation.
22. Also, is there anywhere around here that we can get butter pretzels?
23. ALSO, have you tried the new Pringles Stix that are honey wheat??
24. They taste like yeast rolls from Golden Corral. Hubba hubba.
25. Was hubba hubba an extra thought? Nah.
26. I had to play Tooth Fairy last name because Emma lost her molar while she was at our house.
27. I was uber excited, even after I found out she gets $2, that's right, $2!!! for a molar with a "silver star" in it, which means a cavity has been filled.
28. Say what!?!?
29. In my day, you got a quarter, and you were dang lucky to get that quarter.
30. Molar, incisor, last tooth ever lost... quarter.
31. I'm probably going to give my kid a quarter - what they heck are they gonna do with all that money anyway?
32. If they buy something, it's my money that they're buying it with anyway!
33. Also, I almost had to pay her in quarters because I didn't have any cash.
34. I am totally addicted to DDR.
35. In college, Mary and I would put DDR on workout mode, and during breaks we'd drink beer and eat ice cream, in order to balance everything out.
36. And when Keely and I would run, we would finish off our runs with a pint each of Ben and Jerry's.
37. I'm sensing a pattern.
38. Now I just go ahead and eat the ice cream, and knock that whole pesky exercise thing out of the picture.
39. Sometimes I think I'd be happier if I was Garfield.
40. I hope the Fayetteville Observer comes tomorrow with coupons.
41. They're the only newspaper that will deliver out here.
42. But we just got a new Family Dollar built here - woot!
43. Movin' on up... we got a new Mexican place too!
44. Although we only eat out about once a month or less, so a fat lotta good it does us.
45. Britt Nicole is like religious music's Lily Allen.
46. I really miss Charleston for the simple fact that there was someone cool coming for a concert every week.
47. If no one was coming in concert, a hockey game was being played, or a monster truck rally, or SOMETHING.
48. I hate having to drive to Raleigh or Greensboro to hear someone play that I really like.
49. Now that we are heading up the youth group, we really have an excuse to go to more concerts.
50. Our last concert was last April - we took mom and dad for her birthday to see Third Day and David Crowder Band.
51. Mom jumped around more than most kids there!
52. Our next concert is Casting Crowns in November and then David Crowder in November.
53. Not hearing shouting from downstairs makes me worried that Nate and Stephen will interrupt me at any minute and I won't be able to finish this blog.
54. I can't do this at work because my thoughts are all - "AAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!"
55. I found Jennifer C.'s baby shower present today.
56. Her shower was last Sunday.
57. It was in my suitcase.
58. Not unpacked from Pennsylvania.
59. Which we got back from 10 days ago.
60. Luckily I had gotten her other stuff, and mom had showered her (literally) with clothes, so she's not needy or anything.
61. Actually, I'll probably give her the book but keep the clothes.
62. I can't shut my hope chest anymore because of all the baby clothes.
63. If we can't have children, Jenn Kirby's babies will be VERY fashionable.
64. Also they will have lots of books, toys, coloring books, and an artwork holder that says "Dylan" on it.
65. I'm not changing my son's name just to match his used artwork holder.
66. Our doorbell just rang so that means more people are showing up.
67. If I'm really quiet, no one will come looking for me.
68. If it's Aaron, he'll want to play the game with Stephen and Nate anyway, so he won't even think to look for me.
69. If it's Steve, he'll think I want to be included, and he'll come talk to me.
70. Nice gesture, but I think I'll be overloaded with testosterone tonight.
71. I can't wait for the UFC at the end of this month because of all the girls who will be there.
72. Even if they don't like it, they come to be sociable and I'm so happy about that!
73. Plus we always have really good food.
74. I got a free Glamour in the mail today because Jane magazine went out of business.
75. I actually hate Jane magazine and had tried to unsubscribe for 2 years now with no luck.
76. Now I've successfully unsubscribed - great timing.
77. So I've got a free Glamour and a check for a $2 refund.
78. Although $2 would get me a ton of books in the 10 cent section at the Habitat store!
79. But then I'd have a ton of trashy romance novels...
80. And everyone knows I only read the wholesome Christian romance novels.
81. That skirt around several issues, but I love them anyway.
82. One of our kids put a dead cricket on the prayer list last Wednesday night.
83. What do you say to that, exactly?
84. Our other adult, Maria, said, "I think it's a little late for that..."
85. It's interesting to see what things are funny to them and wonder if I would have laughed at that 10 years ago.
86. I don't think so.
87. I'm feeling a lot of pressure now that I'm so close to the end of this.
88. Soon I've got to go face all these guys.
89. Luckily, once the fight is on, no one will pay attention to each other.
90. Does this mean we can start the grill now?
91. I just got word that the grill has been started.
92. I have arm weights up here that I've only used one time.
93. I quit using them because my arms didn't get stronger after one use.
94. Same goes for my Abs of Steel video.
95. We have a "Bat Cave" here that leads to our attic.
96. Very attractive to little kids.
97. I saw a baby bat one time that had flown into a garage by accident.
98. Literally. He was lying there wounded.
99. A nice lady picked him up with a stick and set him on a bush to heal.
100. Uh.. I think that's a good note to end on. It can only go downhill from here on.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
"It's been 7 hours and 15 days..."
Name that song! If you said "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinead O'Connor, you get a treat!
I know it's been 3000 years since I updated this. Again, I was waiting to post pictures, but it seems that day will never come. So I'll quickly update on Pennsylvania and then we'll all move on with our lives.
Friday, August 31 we left for PA. We arrived that afternoon in lovely Mount Joy at our large and in charge inn. That night we got up with our old friend Rosie and went to Bottling Works with him.
Saturday we went early to the Indian Echo Caverns. We seem to go to caverns everywhere we go. These were not the best ever, but the company was great! We then flitted off to Bird-In-Hand and Intercourse, right smack in the middle of Amish country. We saw a movie in a barn-like theater about the Amish, toured an Amish house, munched on Amish soft pretzels, and went shopping in a great store at the Plain and Fancy Farm. Then we went and played putt-putt (because that's why we go on vacation - to do things we can do around here) and then we traveled on to the Kitchen Kettle Village. This place has over 40 stores in a little town of its own. Jams, jellies, relishes, sauces, desserts, Kettle corn, ice cream, pretzels, you name it. We bought several things from here - the best being the braided butter pretzels. Yum! Unfortunately, you cannot buy these online. Poo.
Sunday we left early and headed out to Hershey! We went straight to the factory and toured it, getting free candy after the tour! So what if it was 9:30 in the morning? We devoured our free Kissables. Then we did our non-perishables shopping so we could put the stuff in the car. After that, we saw a 4-D movie all about chocolate, and then devoured our free candy from that. Then we went on this awesome bus tour around the whole town. The tour guides sang and were absolutely hilarious. We devoured our free Reese's and Kisses and moved on. There we did our food shopping. I am completely ashamed of just how much we spent on chocolate. Dark chocolate, chocolate caramels, truffle kisses, caramel kisses, caramel Reese's, 65% Cacao Reserve chocolate, the list goes on and on and on. We raced over to Fuddrucker's for lunch because we saw it on our map. We loooooooove Fuddrucker's. And because we hadn't had enough candy that morning, we got combos so we could get fresh cookies for free from the bakery! We are gluttons for punishment. Or.. just gluttons. Then we stopped on the way home - yes, to play putt putt yet again. We're sorry.
That night Rosie came over again and we went to a mystery dinner theater which was AWESOME!! We sat with the funniest couple, and the meal was absolutely delicious. It was extremely interactive which was so cool.
Monday we spent the day in Gettysburg. We did a lot of the touristy stuff (although, what else can you do there?) Luckily, Megan had given us tips on what to do. We walked through the National Cemetery which was so peaceful but really sad. We did the tour of the Hall of Presidents which I thought was really cool and informative. Then we toured the Soldier's National Museum which was just a lot of models of battlefields with audio voiceovers, but it was semi-interesting. And the most boring of all - the Battle Theater. We also did a 2 hour - that's right, 2 HOUR - tour of Gettysburg with a licensed Tour Guide, which Meg insisted on. She was right. He was so fun and knew absolutely everything about the history, and actually kept me somewhat interested. Then we went back to Mount Joy to tour the Nissley Vineyards and have a wine tasting. They had such great flavors we ended up buying 4 bottles of different wines. Although it takes us years to get through one bottle of wine, so for now I'm thinking they just look good in our wine holder in the kitchen, which is usually lonely and empty.
I bought one bottle who the girl told me I had to sample it last because it's a dessert wine. I ended up buying a bottle, not only because I liked it, but because at my house you can drink dessert wine whenever the heck you want! With dessert, my big toe. I'll have it with breakfast if I please.
Then we drove to Middletown where we ate with Rosie and his roommate Trevor. Rosie cooked Stromboli and it was heavenly. Then we went back to the inn and watched a movie. Over the weekend we were able to watch The Changeling and Bourne Supremacy. Good times!!
The next morning we got up early and had breakfast with everyone else. Then we were outta there! We had things to do and people to see! Namely, KEELY! We were in D.C. by lunchtime and fondling Keely within minutes! We went to 5 Guys which is only the best hamburger joint EVER (except for Fuddrucker's of course) and got to see her office, and watched her work a little as well. It was SO GREAT to see her.
Thus concluded our journey to Pennsylvania. We were home by 6 pm, in bed a couple of hours later and back at work a few hours after that. Ahhh to be back in PA.
I know it's been 3000 years since I updated this. Again, I was waiting to post pictures, but it seems that day will never come. So I'll quickly update on Pennsylvania and then we'll all move on with our lives.
Friday, August 31 we left for PA. We arrived that afternoon in lovely Mount Joy at our large and in charge inn. That night we got up with our old friend Rosie and went to Bottling Works with him.
Saturday we went early to the Indian Echo Caverns. We seem to go to caverns everywhere we go. These were not the best ever, but the company was great! We then flitted off to Bird-In-Hand and Intercourse, right smack in the middle of Amish country. We saw a movie in a barn-like theater about the Amish, toured an Amish house, munched on Amish soft pretzels, and went shopping in a great store at the Plain and Fancy Farm. Then we went and played putt-putt (because that's why we go on vacation - to do things we can do around here) and then we traveled on to the Kitchen Kettle Village. This place has over 40 stores in a little town of its own. Jams, jellies, relishes, sauces, desserts, Kettle corn, ice cream, pretzels, you name it. We bought several things from here - the best being the braided butter pretzels. Yum! Unfortunately, you cannot buy these online. Poo.
Sunday we left early and headed out to Hershey! We went straight to the factory and toured it, getting free candy after the tour! So what if it was 9:30 in the morning? We devoured our free Kissables. Then we did our non-perishables shopping so we could put the stuff in the car. After that, we saw a 4-D movie all about chocolate, and then devoured our free candy from that. Then we went on this awesome bus tour around the whole town. The tour guides sang and were absolutely hilarious. We devoured our free Reese's and Kisses and moved on. There we did our food shopping. I am completely ashamed of just how much we spent on chocolate. Dark chocolate, chocolate caramels, truffle kisses, caramel kisses, caramel Reese's, 65% Cacao Reserve chocolate, the list goes on and on and on. We raced over to Fuddrucker's for lunch because we saw it on our map. We loooooooove Fuddrucker's. And because we hadn't had enough candy that morning, we got combos so we could get fresh cookies for free from the bakery! We are gluttons for punishment. Or.. just gluttons. Then we stopped on the way home - yes, to play putt putt yet again. We're sorry.
That night Rosie came over again and we went to a mystery dinner theater which was AWESOME!! We sat with the funniest couple, and the meal was absolutely delicious. It was extremely interactive which was so cool.
Monday we spent the day in Gettysburg. We did a lot of the touristy stuff (although, what else can you do there?) Luckily, Megan had given us tips on what to do. We walked through the National Cemetery which was so peaceful but really sad. We did the tour of the Hall of Presidents which I thought was really cool and informative. Then we toured the Soldier's National Museum which was just a lot of models of battlefields with audio voiceovers, but it was semi-interesting. And the most boring of all - the Battle Theater. We also did a 2 hour - that's right, 2 HOUR - tour of Gettysburg with a licensed Tour Guide, which Meg insisted on. She was right. He was so fun and knew absolutely everything about the history, and actually kept me somewhat interested. Then we went back to Mount Joy to tour the Nissley Vineyards and have a wine tasting. They had such great flavors we ended up buying 4 bottles of different wines. Although it takes us years to get through one bottle of wine, so for now I'm thinking they just look good in our wine holder in the kitchen, which is usually lonely and empty.
I bought one bottle who the girl told me I had to sample it last because it's a dessert wine. I ended up buying a bottle, not only because I liked it, but because at my house you can drink dessert wine whenever the heck you want! With dessert, my big toe. I'll have it with breakfast if I please.
Then we drove to Middletown where we ate with Rosie and his roommate Trevor. Rosie cooked Stromboli and it was heavenly. Then we went back to the inn and watched a movie. Over the weekend we were able to watch The Changeling and Bourne Supremacy. Good times!!
The next morning we got up early and had breakfast with everyone else. Then we were outta there! We had things to do and people to see! Namely, KEELY! We were in D.C. by lunchtime and fondling Keely within minutes! We went to 5 Guys which is only the best hamburger joint EVER (except for Fuddrucker's of course) and got to see her office, and watched her work a little as well. It was SO GREAT to see her.
Thus concluded our journey to Pennsylvania. We were home by 6 pm, in bed a couple of hours later and back at work a few hours after that. Ahhh to be back in PA.
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Random compliments and UFC
Last night was our first UFC party since moving home. We hopefully roped in some new fans and can make this a monthly occurance. Also it was fun because there was delicious food cooked by Jenn and Matt. Although they obviously didn't know that if you host the fight, you're not supposed to do any work! I was especially proud of Jenn for sitting down and watching a couple of the fights, and even rooting for one guy to win! It was cute the way she cringed when Gonzaga spit blood down Couture's back, etc. I was actually very touched how she sat with me while she ate even though she obviously abhorred what was on screen. Thanks Jenn Ki. I love you!!
Today as I was leaving the post office, a stranger passed me and as we smiled, he said, "You look very scholarly in your glasses!" I smiled bigger and thanked him in a rather excited manner. As I got in the car, I thought what a great random compliment that was. In my many (or not so many, compared to others) years of living, I have tried to look many things. Silly, beautiful, mature, sexy, alluring, legal, but never scholarly. And really, scholarly is the best out of all those! It's a confidence booster just to know that I can look something even if I don'tI live up to it. After all, when I got in the car and "Emotions" by Mariah Carey was playing, I knew all the lyrics. There's x% of my brain power. Another x% goes to Christian romance novels. Another x% goes towards movie trivia that only gains me power on Facebook. Another x% goes toward remembering things I have to do, things I need to tell people, things I need to make up to people, things I need to get over, and other odds and ends. Seems like I have a lot of wasted brain power. Ergh. How embarrassing.
Today as I was leaving the post office, a stranger passed me and as we smiled, he said, "You look very scholarly in your glasses!" I smiled bigger and thanked him in a rather excited manner. As I got in the car, I thought what a great random compliment that was. In my many (or not so many, compared to others) years of living, I have tried to look many things. Silly, beautiful, mature, sexy, alluring, legal, but never scholarly. And really, scholarly is the best out of all those! It's a confidence booster just to know that I can look something even if I don'tI live up to it. After all, when I got in the car and "Emotions" by Mariah Carey was playing, I knew all the lyrics. There's x% of my brain power. Another x% goes to Christian romance novels. Another x% goes towards movie trivia that only gains me power on Facebook. Another x% goes toward remembering things I have to do, things I need to tell people, things I need to make up to people, things I need to get over, and other odds and ends. Seems like I have a lot of wasted brain power. Ergh. How embarrassing.
Monday, August 27, 2007
My Gracious Mom
So, mom calls me this morning at work to tell me that for a "small fee", she will come to work and run around screaming. (The kids are back in school today.) I tell her I have to check the budget, but I decided to check her qualifications first.
Mom: I can scream, and I can run around, maybe not as fast as I used to, but I can.
Me: Can you start fights?
Mom: Oh yeah! (proceeds to shriek) YOU'RE BREATHING MY AIR!!
Me: Very good! Can you play Hide and Seek?
Mom: Yes!
Me: Can you hide under my desk?
Mom: Uh... I don't know how big your desk is.
Mom: I can scream, and I can run around, maybe not as fast as I used to, but I can.
Me: Can you start fights?
Mom: Oh yeah! (proceeds to shriek) YOU'RE BREATHING MY AIR!!
Me: Very good! Can you play Hide and Seek?
Mom: Yes!
Me: Can you hide under my desk?
Mom: Uh... I don't know how big your desk is.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
It's romance every night in our house
Me: Look, I'm getting a wrinkle on my stomach from sitting at the computer all day long!
Stephen: Oh well, it wouldn't be there except for the extra skin.
Me: (staring blankly at him, then regaining my composure and walloping him over the head with my book)
Stephen: Oh well, it wouldn't be there except for the extra skin.
Me: (staring blankly at him, then regaining my composure and walloping him over the head with my book)
Thursday, August 23, 2007
There's a saying in Missouri, if you don't like the weather just wait 5 minutes. In Blaine, with hard work, I think we can get that down to 3 or 4.
I've been putting off posting on this because I didn't have these pictures on the computer yet, but now I do so I have no excuses. These are the pictures from Stephen K.'s surprise birthday party last Friday night. It was my first surprise party and I thought it was hilarious!
Here we are waiting patiently for Stephen and Christy to get home...
Here is Stephen coming in the door. If you could zoom in, you'd see his eyes are as big as platters. Awesome!
Here he is still shocked and slightly ticked off.
This is where he throws down his stuff in mock anger.
Here we are waiting patiently for Stephen and Christy to get home...
One more picture since we rarely get ones of ourselves...
Here is Stephen coming in the door. If you could zoom in, you'd see his eyes are as big as platters. Awesome!
Here he is still shocked and slightly ticked off.
This is where he throws down his stuff in mock anger.
My beautiful sister and me.
Us again, cheesing it up.
Beautiful Jenn and Beautiful Lauren
All the cool girls.
Saturday night we went to Jenn and Matt's for dinner and game night again. (2 Saturdays in a row - ROCK!) We played a new game called Hear Me Out that Stephen and I love. It's really funny, cause one part of the game you have to talk about a random topic for 45 seconds. 45 seconds is actually a really long time when you're asked to do something like that! The funniest, most random one was one of Jenn's. She had to talk in a nonsense language to the person on her left (that would be me). For the whole 45 seconds, the rest of us were just breaking up because we weren't really sure what she was supposed to be doing, and she was talking very excitedly!! Stephen said he thought she was speaking gibberish at first. It was so absolutely hilarious! Once I had to teach an aerobics class. I don't remember either of Matt or Stephen's being particularly funny, but the game is really fun.
Yesterday I went to lunch with Jenn. C. and her baby-in-womb Mark. She's only a couple of months from popping! I can't wait to meet this baby!
I'm going to try very hard to feel grateful for these coming up dreary days. I know we need the rain so much, so I'm very thankful, but I hate looking out the windows to dark skies. I've not walked Cassie the past two mornings because it's just too dark outside when I get up. Poor girl. Well, I'm off to get something accomplished!
Friday, August 17, 2007
It's not easy being green. - Kermit the Frog
I love "going green". I've always had a rather green heart, and I loved the post Libba did about Gray Water. I've started a recycling center at work for everything but cardboard (because we don't get a lot of cardboard here), and we recycle at home. Stephen gets smacked when he throws his Mt Dew cans in the trash, but he rarely does it. Now paper, it's hard for him to remember to recycle. We were lucky enough to buy a washer and dryer that are eco-friendly, we compost instead of use our disposal whenever possible, we only do laundry about every 10 days which saves water, if it ever rained we would save that rainwater for future uses, and we drive cars with awesome gas mileage. I guess you'd say we pretty much do our part for the environment, but I never feel like I'm doing enough. I just think most "green" things are so simple to do, that I can always do more. One of my pet peeves is people buying 2, 3, 4 bottled waters a day instead of refilling them. I've had the same two water bottles for about 4 months now that I switch off filling up, putting in the fridge to stay cool, etc. I came across this article today - actually, it came across ME because it was emailed to me by a newsletter - about bottled water and I really wanted to post it:
As the industry grows it becomes more and more of an environmental issue mostly because of packaging. US bottled water sales are growing nearly 10 percent annually and the trash from tossed containers is climbing just as quickly. The irony is that the United States has some of the best public water supplies in the world. Not only that, but bottled water sold in the United States is not necessarily cleaner or safer than most tap water. At the end of July beverage giant PepsiCo was forced by public pressure to explain on its Aquafina bottled water that the contents inside come from...the tap. Yet the public still consumes four billion gallons of water a year in individual-sized bottles. According to the Earth Policy Institute, it costs the United States 1.5 million barrels of oil a year to produce the plastic bottles used for water. And if one adds the energy required to transport it -- especially premium water imported all the way from France, Italy and even the Fiji islands -- the negative impact on the environment rises quickly. Do we really need all that bottled water?
Helpful tips from the article:
* There is nothing evil about bottled water. Sometimes it is just more convenient to buy a bottle of water then spend time looking for a water fountain. But do you really have to buy two or three brand new individual bottles a day? Whenever I buy a bottle of water I try save the bottle, if it is convenient, and re-fill it with tap water. I almost always have half-a-dozen bottles of ice cold water in my fridge that I haven't paid a cent for, and it's just as easy to bring one with me in the car in the morning or to the gym at night as it is to buy a bottle while I'm out.
* Tap water tastes funny to you? Install a water filter on your sink at home. A faucet mounted water filter can be as cheap as $40 and will remove 96-99 percent of chlorine, 92-99 percent of lead, and between 95-99 percent of at least a half dozen other chemicals and impurities from your tap water.
* Your filtered tap water will not only be cleaner than the typical bottled water but a lot cheaper. Filtering your water with a faucet mounted filter will cost you about 20 cent per gallon, versus more than a dollar for one pint of bottled water.
Just thought that was interesting.
As the industry grows it becomes more and more of an environmental issue mostly because of packaging. US bottled water sales are growing nearly 10 percent annually and the trash from tossed containers is climbing just as quickly. The irony is that the United States has some of the best public water supplies in the world. Not only that, but bottled water sold in the United States is not necessarily cleaner or safer than most tap water. At the end of July beverage giant PepsiCo was forced by public pressure to explain on its Aquafina bottled water that the contents inside come from...the tap. Yet the public still consumes four billion gallons of water a year in individual-sized bottles. According to the Earth Policy Institute, it costs the United States 1.5 million barrels of oil a year to produce the plastic bottles used for water. And if one adds the energy required to transport it -- especially premium water imported all the way from France, Italy and even the Fiji islands -- the negative impact on the environment rises quickly. Do we really need all that bottled water?
Helpful tips from the article:
* There is nothing evil about bottled water. Sometimes it is just more convenient to buy a bottle of water then spend time looking for a water fountain. But do you really have to buy two or three brand new individual bottles a day? Whenever I buy a bottle of water I try save the bottle, if it is convenient, and re-fill it with tap water. I almost always have half-a-dozen bottles of ice cold water in my fridge that I haven't paid a cent for, and it's just as easy to bring one with me in the car in the morning or to the gym at night as it is to buy a bottle while I'm out.
* Tap water tastes funny to you? Install a water filter on your sink at home. A faucet mounted water filter can be as cheap as $40 and will remove 96-99 percent of chlorine, 92-99 percent of lead, and between 95-99 percent of at least a half dozen other chemicals and impurities from your tap water.
* Your filtered tap water will not only be cleaner than the typical bottled water but a lot cheaper. Filtering your water with a faucet mounted filter will cost you about 20 cent per gallon, versus more than a dollar for one pint of bottled water.
Just thought that was interesting.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
And to think that in some countries these dogs are eaten.
Is it just me or is Cassie getting harder and harder to walk in the mornings? Last week I was awful about walking her. I've just been so exhausted lately. And it's way too hot to walk her in the evenings - no dog should be walking a mile or two in 105+ temperatures. Now that it's cooled down to the 90's we can get back in a routine perhaps. Anyway, that's why I prefer walking her at 6:15, 6:30 in the morning, when it's about 75 out, breezy, sun's just rising, and no one else is around. It was very calming. It was very relaxing. It was a great way to start my days off. But yesterday and today, it's been like she was possessed by some demon of play. She's way too big to jump on people, but she loves to jump on me. This morning she knocked me over and then kept trying to pat my head and lick it at the same time. I ended up having to give her a spanking. Guilt flashed in her eyes only a brief second before her tongue was hanging out and she was panting, "arentwegoingwalkingletsgowalkingcomeongetyouracttogethermomiamsoreadytogothatiamgonnajumpagainyepi'mgettinreadyi'mgonnajumpi'mgonnajumparentwegoingwalkinghuh Huh HUH??!?!?!?"
Whew. I walked her around the yard and the course a bit, trying to stream out her energy, before I walked her past the neighbors' houses, just in case she tried to trample me again (so I wouldn't be embarrassed that I can't handle my 10-month-old) and then we started walking. She was better after that and maybe even a bit worn out. She's also started whining in the mornings, after I go back inside. I don't know what to do about her.
People say that babysitting is the best form of birth control. What about dogs? I can't even handle this 50-pound puppy!
*Note: Cassie is one of the better dogs we've had. I get frustrated with her but I love her to death and she's really not THAT bad.*
Whew. I walked her around the yard and the course a bit, trying to stream out her energy, before I walked her past the neighbors' houses, just in case she tried to trample me again (so I wouldn't be embarrassed that I can't handle my 10-month-old) and then we started walking. She was better after that and maybe even a bit worn out. She's also started whining in the mornings, after I go back inside. I don't know what to do about her.
People say that babysitting is the best form of birth control. What about dogs? I can't even handle this 50-pound puppy!
*Note: Cassie is one of the better dogs we've had. I get frustrated with her but I love her to death and she's really not THAT bad.*
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